Thanks to the Basilisk
by David-El
Summary: There's only one person who's always been there when Harry's needed her, and when he comes close to losing her, it makes him realize what's really important, such as his love for Hermione Granger. An answer to ProudMudblood's Second Year Challenge.
1. First Year

**A/N:** Well, here's the final preview for my upcoming stories. And don't worry about the length of the prologue or how long it covers, I'm only doing it this long to cover some changes I've made in _Philosopher's Stone_ and _Chamber of Secrets_. Even then, the Second Year prologue will only cover up to Hermione's petrification. Enjoy, as the current votes are in favour of this story right now!

**Thanks to the Basilisk**

**Prologue One: First Year**

_Wednesday, July 31, 2002_

Inside Madame Malkin's Robes for all Occasions, Harry James Potter was getting measured for his school robes when the pale blond next to him decided to strike up a conversation with him. "Hello, Hogwarts too?"

"Yes," Harry answered.

"My father's next door buying my books and mum's talking to Ollivander about wands. Then we're going to go look at brooms. I'm hoping to talk my father into buying me one. It's just so unfair that we can't have our own brooms this year, isn't it?"

"I wouldn't know. I don't think I've ever flown on a broom before."

The blond stared in shock. "Really? You don't have your own broom?"

"No."

"You've never played Quidditch?"

"No, never even seen it played."

"You haven't? Oh, you're in for a real treat then! All four houses have their own teams, I'm hoping to join next year. Do you know what house you're going to be in?"

"No," Harry said, feeling more stupid with everything the blond said, though he seemed quite friendly.

"Well, no one knows until they get there, but I'm fairly certain that I'll be in Slytherin, most of my family has gone there after all. Imagine being in Hufflepuff, I'd rather leave than be in that house."

"I wouldn't know."

The blond frowned, as though confused, until he spotted Hagrid. "Say, look at him!"

"That's Hagrid," Harry explained.

"Oh, I've heard of him. He's a servant, isn't he?"

"He's the gamekeeper," Harry responded.

"Isn't that servant's work?" the blond asked. "Besides, I've heard all sorts of terrible stories about him. He loves all kinds of monsters, trying to raise them as pets, and that he's a bit of a drunk and he sets his bed on fire trying to do magic."

"I think he's brilliant," Harry said, starting to not like the other boy.

"Really? Why? Wait, why's he here with you? Where are your parents?"

"They're dead," Harry said shortly.

"Oh, _oh_, I'm so sorry," the blond said, completely in shock. "Um, they were _our kind_, right?"

"They were a witch and wizard, if that's what you mean."

"Oh, good. My father doesn't want me mixing with muggleborns. He keeps saying that they don't belong. They don't know our ways and keep trying to change them, and that they should keep magic in the old families."

"Well, I might as well be a muggleborn," Harry answered in an angry hiss. "My parents may have had magic, but I was raised by muggles."

"HEY! I said that my father believes that, I never said that I do!" the blond said. "But you may want to get some everyday robes and some books on our culture so you can fit in better," he said, just as Madame Malkin finished. "See you at Hogwarts," the boy said with a smile.

"See you there," Harry responded. Hmm, that actually didn't go so bad. Maybe this could go better than he thought. As Madame Malkin finished, he decided to take the other boys' advice and ordered several everyday robes in different colours.

_Sunday, September 1, 2002_

Harry was sitting in a compartment on the _Hogwarts Express_ with his first confirmed friend ever, Ron Weasley enjoying his first taste of magical sweets when another boy opened the door to their compartment and asked "Sorry, but have either of you seen a toad at all?"

Ron just shook his head, while Harry said "No, sorry, but I'm sure he'll turn up. Do you want some help?"

"No, a girl named Hermione is helping me out. Thanks though. Oh, my name's Neville Longbottom."

"Try asking a prefect for help, Neville. And my name's Harry, Harry Potter." For the first time since he rejoined the magical world, someone didn't immediately look at his forehead when he introduced himself. Neville just shook his hand before heading out.

Ron started making fun of the fact that Neville had a toad and was about to attempt to turn his rat yellow when a bushy-haired girl burst in asking "Have either of you seen a toad? A boy named Neville's lost one."

Ron immediately got after her saying that Neville had already been by there asking about the toad. Harry was shocked at the rudeness of the redhead, he seemed almost as mean as his bully of a cousin, Dudley and his gang of friends. She actually seemed quite nice to him, and just as eager as him to see magic, as she encouraged Ron to do the colour-changing spell. When it failed, she started talking again. "Are you sure that it's a real spell? Well, it's not very good, is it? Of course, I've only tried a few simple ones myself, but they've all worked for me." She then sat down in the compartment across from Harry and, pointing her wand at his glasses, said "For example, _oculus reparo._" Immediately the tape around the bridge of his glasses unwrapped, revealing only perfectly intact metal underneath. "That's better, isn't it? Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it's the very best school of witchcraft there is, I've heard—I've learned all our course books by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough—I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"

"I'm Harry, Harry Potter, and I'd bet you'll be at the top of our class, Hermione. Thanks for fixing my glasses by the way. Oh, and this is my friend Ron Weasley," Harry said as he offered her his hand. As she shook it, he asked "By the way, would you mind if I borrow any spell books you bought that weren't on the list? The man that took me to Diagon Alley didn't let me get anything more than was on the list." Hermione quickly agreed while Ron just started at him in shock.

Once Hermione left to help Neville out more, Ron turned to Harry and asked "Why the bloody hell would you want more work, Harry? She's mental, that one."

Harry glared at him before saying "You do remember why I'm famous, right, Ron? Because some nut job decided to kill me and my parents, and Hagrid thinks he's still out there. If I don't learn to protect myself as soon as possible, what's going to happen the next time he comes after me?" Ron just shrugged before launching into a discussion on Quidditch.

Ron was still explaining Quidditch to Harry when the pale boy from Madame Malkin's showed up at their compartment. With him were two boys that looked like nothing more than hired muscle: thickset and extremely mean and stupid-looking. "You're Harry, aren't you? Harry Potter?" When Harry nodded, the boy introduced himself. "My name's Draco, Draco Malfoy. I wanted to apologize for what I said at Madame Malkins, it was extremely rude of me." The muscle on Draco's left _harrumphed_ and Draco added "Oh, and these are Crabbe and Goyle." Ron sniggered and Draco turned to him and studied him. "I can guess who you are. Red hair, freckles, second-hand robes, and an air of greed, prejudice, and disloyalty. You must be Ron Weasley." He turned back to Harry and said "You'll find that there are some wizards are better to be around than others, I can help you with that."

The look in his eyes was so desperate, it almost looked like he was _begging_ Harry to take his hand. But Ron was his friend, wasn't he? And Draco had insulted him. "I'm sorry, Draco, but I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself. Thanks for the offer, though."

Draco looked like someone had just killed his owl. "I hope so, Harry. I'd hate for what happened to your parents to happen to you. They trusted the wrong person and it cost them their lives. Oh, and before I go, here's a bit of advice, study up on Potions, would you?" Then, before Harry could ask what he meant, Draco left the compartment, while the muscles burst in and tried to take some of the sweets Harry had bought. However, Ron's pet rat Scabbers bit the larger one before he could take anything and both scampered off after Draco. Ron then started talking about how terrible the Malfoy family was (and being extremely rude about it, again,) but Harry just sat there wondering if he'd made a big mistake in not taking Draco Malfoy's hand.

"_**-So put me on! Don't be afraid!**_  
_**And don't get in a flap!**_  
_**You're in safe hands (though I have none)**_  
_**For I'm a Thinking Cap!"**_

Harry watched as his friends were sorted. Robin Black, a boy he'd met on the boat ride to the castle was quickly sorted into Gryffindor (a shock to most of the students and staff,) while Hermione was eventually sorted into Gryffindor as well (after nearly five minutes sitting under it.) Neville also took a long time under the hat, but also eventually ended up in Gryffindor. Draco, as he had predicted, went quickly to Slytherin, and Harry was shocked when a pair of identical twins with the last name of Patil were split up, one to Ravenclaw while the other to Gryffindor. Then his name was called, and he obediently walked up to the stool and sat down while Professor McGonagall put the Sorting Hat on his head.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting…So where shall I put you?"

_ Put me wherever you think best, Hat,_ Harry thought. If he was sorted into Slytherin, then maybe he could make it up to Draco. If not, well, who knows?

"Very polite, Mr Potter, and the name is Sherlock. I honestly don't know where to send you. Both Salazar and Godric would be proud to have you in their house, and you could be great in either. Rowena would have loved you as well, but not as much as those two. Your four friends that I've already sorted would accept you no matter where you went, and I can't even use your ancestry to decide. Your father's family was scattered throughout three of the four houses, and you have Slytherin blood on your mother's side, and she was a Gryffindor herself! So, where do _you _want to go?" Harry quickly thought of an answer and Sherlock said, "Very well, GRYFFINDOR! Good luck, Mr Potter. I shall watch your career with great interest."

Unnoticed by Harry or any of the other students, three professors were all staring at him. All three, Minerva McGonagall, Filius Flitwick and Albus Dumbledore were very intrigued. Harry was the first hatstall in fifty years, and they should know, as Minerva and Filius were the hatstalls. Also, he was the longest hatstall in who knew how long, it had taken the Hat more than fifteen minutes to finally decide on Gryffindor, and all three were wondering what the other option was. Severus Snape was also curious, but as a Master Occlumens, he didn't stare at Harry. However, just because he _didn't_ stare didn't mean that he wasn't just as curious as the others. Why did it take the spawn of James Charlus Potter and his beloved sister in all but blood took so long. Maybe he wasn't as bad as he had feared? Well, he'd see on Friday . . .

_Friday, September 6, 2002_

By the time Friday rolled around, Harry was quite looking forward to it. He had taken Draco's advice and studied his Potions texts hard, and even managed to convince Hermione to let him read her extras during breakfast (which they usually had together, being the only two Gryffindors to get up early. Based on his observations, Hermione was also quite friendless. At least Harry had Neville and Ron.) Also, Potions class was currently one of only two classes the Gryffindors had with the Slytherins, meaning Harry only saw Draco two times a week. Unfortunately he hadn't managed to sit close enough to Draco in DADA to talk to him, but he hoped that they could still build a friendship.

Unfortunately, Potions was in one of the coldest classrooms in the Dungeons, and one of the creepiest, with Professor Snape, Head of Slytherin House keeping several animal parts floating in jars. And because the Slytherin dorms were also in the Dungeons, they had gotten there first, keeping Harry away from Draco again, leaving Harry sitting with Neville, who was quickly becoming his best friend. (And he was a far better friend than Ron Weasley was. Neville was never rude to anyone else, and _definitely_ never picked on people as he was typically the one being picked on, mostly because he was a bit of a klutz.)

After roll, Snape began his opening speech. "There will be little foolish wand waving and no silly incantations in this class. As such, I don't expect many of you to appreciate the subtle science and exact art that is potion-making. However, for those select few who possess the predisposition, I can teach you how to bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses. I can tell you how to bottle fame, brew glory and even put a stopper in death." He paused his speech and looked directly at Harry, who was clearly taking notes on the speech. "Then again maybe some of you have come to Hogwarts in possession of abilities so formidable that you feel confident enough to not pay attention!" Harry looked up at that as Snape shot a question at him. "Potter, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Harry stared at him in shock. Did he really expect him to know the answer? But seeing as how the professor was still looking at him, he answered. "Umm, a good long sleep?"

Snape just barely managed to hide his smile at that. Harry sounded _so much_ like Lily there! He even managed to _look_ like her while saying it! "Very good, Mr Potter, even if you didn't name the potion. The proper name is the Draught of Living Death, which you Muggle-raised students may recognize from several stories. Now, where would you look if I asked you to find me a bezoar?"

Harry raised his left eyebrow at that, nearly making Snape gasp in shock. Another thing in common with Lily! "The stomach of a goat, sir."

"Not bad. What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"Is there a difference?" Harry asked, genuinely curious.

Snape's smile actually got large enough for everyone to notice. "Very good, Mr Potter, ten points to Gryffindor. And just so all of you know, that particular plant also goes by the name of aconite." Snape then led them through the steps necessary to make the Boils Cure potion, and by the time the class ended almost two hours later, Snape pronounced Harry and Neville's potion the best he'd ever seen a pair of First Years make in his twelve years of teaching. Neville and Harry just grinned and high-fived each other. They had found their favourite class, at least for this year.

_Thursday, September 20, 2002_

Madame Hooch had just led Neville away after he broke his wrist when Draco picked up the Remembrall. "Look, It's that stupid thing Longbottom's Gran sent him." He took off on his broom and then called out, "Hey, Potter, what do you say to a game of catch?"

Harry was hurt by the use of his last name, and figuring he had better save Neville's ball, so he took a quick look around for teachers then took off after Draco. "Give it here, or I'll knock you off your broom!"

Draco looked hurt at that. "You wouldn't really do that, would you Harry?"

Harry stopped moving and looked at him in confusion. "I don't get you, Draco Malfoy. You act like you want to be my friend, yet you insult Ron, steal from Neville, and down there you called me 'Potter.' Why?"

"Harry, you can't trust that Weasley, and he's a real bully. My mother's family, we all have this 'sense' of people, a kind of empathy, we know who we can trust and who we can't. As for calling you by your last name, you're a Gryffindor and I'm a Slytherin, there are certain expectations of us, especially on me. If you had shaken my hand, or if we were in the same house, then we could act at least neutral to each other in public, but until we get to Third Year, it's too dangerous."

Harry decided to take his advice into consideration, but he was confused about one thing Draco had said. "Why? What happens in Third Year?"

"Simple, the worst blood supremacists of Slytherin will have graduated by then, robbing my father of his best spies and we should be able to defend ourselves from anyone else by then."

"That still doesn't explain why you stole the Remembrall, Draco."

Draco just smiled. "I already told you, I wanted to play catch with you. I'm more of a Chaser, but that position won't be open until our Fifth Year, while the Seeker position should be open next year. That's when we'll be able to play Quidditch, officially. Besides, it really is useless, and cheap, so no loss if it breaks. If it really means that much, then I can get him another one. Good choice with Longbottom by the way, he's a very loyal and courageous chap, he'll make a great friend. Anyway, most of my year mates don't mind if we're friends if you pass a few tests. You had one on Friday during Potions, which you passed. This is another, and you've passed. So, do you want some practice?" Harry shrugged, and they tossed the ball between them, until Draco accidentally threw it too hard, and Harry dived after it, catching it just seconds before it would have broken.

As a result of the catch, McGonagall quickly recruited Harry to the Gryffindor Quidditch team, captained by the Quidditch fanatic Oliver Wood, and Draco 'challenged' Harry to a duel. Harry knew he was supposed to reject the challenge, but Ron accepted for him, resulting in a midnight adventure that nearly got himself, Hermione, Weasley and Neville killed, and nearly destroying his and Hermione's friendship. Although, Hermione did say something that would bring a smile to everyone's faces for years to come. "Now I'm going to bed before any of you come up with another clever idea to get us killed. Or worse, expelled!"

_Thursday, October 31, 2002_

Over the next month, Harry tended to partner with Neville for Potions, which led to the duo quickly becoming one of the best students in the class, for Gryffindor in any case, especially with them meeting Draco on the sly to study between classes. He also managed to patch things up with Hermione, and in an attempt to get Ron Weasley off his back, he became friends with his prankster brothers, Fred and George (aka Gred and Forge, or Mischief and Mayhem respectively.) When they heard his plans, they quickly inducted him into their little group of pranksters called 'The New Marauders,' named after a foursome of pranksters that had made a map of Hogwarts that the Twins constantly used. Under the Marauder name of Bolt, Harry pranked Ron mercilessly whenever the youngest Weasley did things that would hurt Harry's friendship with anyone other than him. (Ron seemed to believe that _he_ was the only one that could _ever_ be Harry's friend at Hogwarts, and that belief had quickly worn Harry down to the point where he'd taken up Draco's favourite nickname for Ron-Weasel.) Then Halloween came.

_Damn that Weasel! If he would just learn to keep his mouth shut, this wouldn't have happened!_ Harry was positively furious. They had just left Charms, where they had been practicing the levitation charm, _Wingardium Leviosa_. Harry, as usual, had paired up with Neville (who, oddly, seemed to get better results with Harry's wand than his own. Neville had finally explained at the end of class that he was using his father's wand instead of one that had chosen him. Harry then insisted on writing to Ollivander on Neville's behalf to get him his own wand.) What got Harry mad though was the fact that Hermione and Weasel had been paired up, and Weasel had insulted Hermione when she succeeded at the charm and he didn't.

To make matters worse, Hermione had been so upset about the insults that she had ran to one of the girl's loos and completely missed the Halloween feast, meaning she had also missed Quirrell's announcement that a _troll_ had made it into the castle! While Percy Weasley was leading the Gryffindors to their dorm, Harry quickly snuck out of line and into a secret passage that he knew led to a corridor near the loo that Hermione was in. "Hey, Harry! Wait up!"

Harry turned and was surprised to see Neville following him. "What are you doing, Neville?"

"Funny, I was just about to ask you the same question."

"Hermione doesn't know about the troll. I was going to warn her about it."

Neville just grinned then. "Well then, I'd say you'd probably like some back-up, just in case the troll finds us or her, right? I'm coming with you, Harry, and there's nothing you can do to stop me." Harry smiled at the boy that was now without a doubt officially his best friend and together, the two of them raced down the passage. When they made it to the end of the passage, they quickly found the troll. "Oh, we got lucky."

"How's that, Nev?" Harry asked.

"That's a forest troll, the weakest and dumbest of the lot. I was worried that it might be a cave or mountain troll. The cave troll is the toughest and most magical-resistant troll, while the mountain troll is the smartest out there. This should actually be pretty easy."

"Okay then, have any ideas on how to get past it?" Harry asked. Unfortunately for the duo, the troll was between them and the girl's loo, and heading in Hermione's direction.

"First, we get it's attention, then . . . do you know the freezing wind charm? You cast that while I cast the water charm. I'm not sure I can cast the wind charm, but I know I can cast _Aguamenti._ That should allow you to slide beneath it to Hermione." Harry looked doubtful, but he agreed. Neville then cast several noise-making charms to get the trolls' attention. As soon as it had turned towards the Gryffindor boys, Neville cast the water charm.

Harry cast _Avero Frigidaris_ as soon as the water had hit the floor and slid along the ice that had formed beneath the troll. As soon as he stopped sliding, he stood up and ran into the loo, stopping just outside the stalls. "Hermione! Are you in here?"

"Harry? What are you doing in here? You're a boy, if you get caught in here, you'll get into trouble!" Hermione said, her eyes still red from crying.

"Hermione, there's a troll outside! We need to get going, now!" Hermione panicked and ran into Harry's arms. Harry gave her a quick hug then led her outside. Outside, they found Neville casting spell after spell at the troll, none of which Harry _or_ Hermione knew, and (thanks to their friendship and Harry's Ravenclaw-esque study of duelling spells) they were some of the most knowledgeable in their year. Harry, knowing of Neville's weakness with magic due to his father's wand, decided to duplicate the last spell that Neville cast. With a quick _Ahreose Thaec_, the roof of the corridor collapsed onto the trolls' head, instantly killing it.

"Neville, where did you learn that spell?" Harry asked, extremely impressed with the magic, though he was now fairly tired. He could just imagine how Neville was feeling.

"My family . . . passed down . . . Celtic magic," Neville gasped out. He was far from the most fit person under normal circumstances, but now, he looked worse than Harry did after the most gruelling of Oliver's practices. Neville looked Harry in the eye, and they silently agreed that they were going to start physically training their bodies so they could do more magic like this, on the off chance that it was needed. "Celtic magic is . . . somewhat easier to do and . . . more powerful than the Roman . . . magic we train with here, but . . . the trade-off is that it's . . . more difficult to learn, and it _uses _more power," Neville explained, finally starting to catch his breath.

A moment later, Professors McGonagall, Snape and Quirrell showed up in the corridor, shocked to see the three Firsties (and even more shocked to see Hermione still clinging to Harry.) Quirrell took one look at the troll, and sat down on some of the rubble, clutching his heart, not even trying to suppress the whimper he made at the sight of it. Snape looked like he was trying not to be impressed (and, Harry noticed, his leg was bleeding.) McGonagall on the other hand, looked like she was either terrified or furious, none of them could decide which. "What on earth were you thinking? You're lucky you weren't killed! Why aren't you in your dormitory?"

"It was my fault, Professor," Hermione spoke up.

"Oh, no you don't, Hermione! I'm not letting you take the fall for that jealous prat!" Harry interrupted. Turning to the professors, he explained "Earlier today, during Charms, Hermione attempted to help Ron Weasley with the spell we were learning, and when she managed to do the charm when he couldn't, he insulted her, saying that she was a nightmare and that it was easy to see why she had no friends. Hermione unfortunately heard and believed him, although I'm not sure why," he said, turning back to his friend and gave her another hug. "Hermione then ran to the loo back there to cry, and was there when Quirrell warned us about the troll."

"Harry realized that Hermione had missed the warning, and went after her. I noticed him leaving and decided to help them. While Harry got Hermione out of the loo, I kept the troll busy. Harry then finished it off when they got out of the loo," Neville finished, having caught his breath.

To their surprise, it was Snape who spoke first. "Well then, in that case, may I suggest twenty points from Mr Weasley and a weeks worth of detentions with me or Filch for insulting a fellow student, and nearly causing her death, while twenty points each to Mr Potter and Mr Longbottom." Turning to the trio of shocked Gryffindors, (Hermione _still_ clinging to Harry,) he said "It's nigh on impossible for three First Years to take on a fully grown troll and live to tell the tale. That you three did it, let alone managing to kill it, and in defence of a fellow student with no thought of the glory that would come, speaks highly of your character and skill." Eventually, McGonagall let them go, but she awarded thirty points to Neville and Harry, instead of the twenty suggested by Snape. That night, Hermione and Harry never went to bed, as Hermione refused to leave Harry's side. They were found the next morning by their fellow Gryffindors, asleep on the couch next to the fire.

_Night of Wednesday-Thursday, May 28-29, 2003_

The rest of the year had been a wild ride of ups and downs, particularly when it came to their relationship with Draco. While Harry understood the need for Draco's act, he was genuinely worried that if he kept it up long enough, the mask would become Draco's actual face and he would lose his friend. Fortunately, Draco still managed to keep meeting the three friends on the sly for homework help. Also, when the Gryffindor trio started suspecting Snape of attempting to steal the Philosopher's Stone, Draco made very logical arguments for Quirrell being the actual would-be thief. He even managed to help them get rid of a Norwegian Ridgeback baby that Hagrid had won in a card game by pretending to try to get them in trouble when it became apparent that McGonagall would have caught them. And as Harry's friendship with Draco rose, so did his rivalry with Ron Weasley. It got so bad that the Weasel had taunted him about his catch at his first Quidditch match and the fact that he wasn't wanted at the Dursley's.

Hermione on the other hand proved to be inseparable from Harry after Halloween. When Harry was on the Quidditch pitch practicing with the team, Hermione was there, sitting in the stands with at least one book with her. Even when she was reading or working on their homework, she still managed to find time to cheer Harry on, no matter what. When Harry's broom was being hexed during his first Quidditch match, it was Hermione who set Snape and Quirrell on fire to save Harry. And when the time came to get rid of the dragon, it was Hermione who helped Harry carry it to the Astronomy Tower and send it off to Charlie Weasley, who worked with dragons in Romania. Unfortunately, the two were caught by Filch, and lost fifty points each when McGonagall found out about the incident. One odd thing (at least to Harry and Hermione,) was that when the Gryffindors found out, they started _teasing_ the duo about it, the Twins most of all. Also, after that, the Twins were often seen carrying around a little notebook, always ready for when someone would come and whisper something to them before giving the infamous duo some amount of money.

Two weeks earlier, on May 21, the three friends had done their detention for being out after curfew in the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid. He had requested them so that they could find a creature that was hunting unicorns and feeding on their blood. Harry and Draco had found the being about two hours into the detention, feeding off another unicorn. They had only just managed to escape the creature thanks to the timely intervention of a centaur named Firenze, who informed the two boys that the being was in fact the Dark Lord Voldemort.

Today, only a few hours ago, Harry managed to put the pieces they'd been gathering all year into a nearly complete picture. Voldemort had infiltrated the school somehow, and using either Snape or Quirrell, had figured out how to get past all the enchantments, including Fluffy the Cerberus, and had just sent a fake message to Dumbledore in order to lure him from the school, leaving Voldemort free to attempt to steal the Philosopher's Stone that night and regain his body. Harry had convinced Hermione and Neville that they had to go after the Stone themselves, unless they wanted Voldemort to return. That night, the three friends carefully snuck out of their dorm after Harry had convinced the house-elves in the kitchen to put a mild sleeping draught in every Gryffindor's food except for theirs.

They had nearly made it to the Third Floor corridor where Fluffy was kept when the trio when they ran across Peeves the Poltergeist. "Who's there?" he said suddenly as they climbed toward him. "Know you're there, even if I can't see you. Are you ghoulie or ghostie or wee student beastie? Should call Filch, I should, if something's a-creeping around unseen."

Hit by a burst of inspiration, Harry lowered his voice into a remarkable likeness of the Bloody Baron, ghost of Slytherin, and said "The Bloody Baron has his own reasons for being invisible, Peeves." Peeves nearly fell to the bottom of the tower and he immediately started offering apologies. "I have business here, Peeves. Stay away from this place tonight."  
"I will, sir, I most certainly will," said Peeves, rising up in the air again. "Hope your business goes well, Baron, I'll not bother you. But your Bloodiness should know that someone else is there besides ol' Peevsie!" Then he scooted off without another word.

"What do you think he meant by that?" Harry asked, but neither of his fellow Gryffindors had any idea what the poltergeist meant. When they arrived at the corridor, he turned to his friends and said "If you want to go back, I won't blame you. You can take the cloak, I won't need it now."

"Don't be stupid," Neville said.

"We're coming," said Hermione. Harry beamed at their response, barely believing that he had friends that were so loyal. Was this what it meant to be a family?

"I'm not leaving either, Harry," an _extremely_ familiar voice drawled. Harry's grin grew even bigger (if that was possible) at the sight of Draco Malfoy leaning against the opposite wall, coming out from his hiding place in the midst of the shadows. "I can think of no better way to prove myself loyal to you than this, Harry. The Weasel was right on the train about one thing, my father didn't need an excuse to join the Dark Lord, but I refuse to follow in his footsteps. I refuse to bow to anyone but the royal family, and that means I need to fight the Dark Lord."

"Glad to have you onboard, Draco," Harry smiled. He then opened the door, and they were surprised to find that Fluffy had already been put to sleep with an enchanted harp.

"There, that proves it! Uncle Sev would have never used a harp, he hates them! He would have used a cello to put the beast to sleep," Draco said as he renewed the charm on the harp. Harry had to admit that the Slytherin probably had a good point, as he would know more about the Potions Master's quirks, especially as Draco was his godson.

Together the four friends then lifted the Cerberus' paw of the trapdoor, and after a short debate, Harry leapt into the unknown. The emerald-eyed boy landed with a soft FLUMP onto what appeared to be some kind of plant. "Don't worry, it's safe! I've landed on a vine of some sort!"

The three friends then jumped in, one after the other, with Neville being the last, and being the last, he was also the first to notice the vines wrapping around his friends. "Harry, I thought you said this was safe! This is Devil's Snare! Now, let me think . . . light or fire! Everyone, cast Lumos or the flame charm!" Within five seconds, the foursome fell through to the actual bottom, only a few feet below the plant.

"Is it just me, or was that surprisingly easy?" Draco asked.

"Yeah, it was, but Devil's Snare can be extremely dangerous, despite the fact that it's a First Year plant. I'm not surprised that it was used as a defence," Neville answered.

The next task was just as easy, with charmed flying keys being the only barrier to get to the next room. Between Harry and Draco, the correct key was easily found and caught. The fourth task on the other hand was far more difficult. "Well, well, what do we have here? A chessboard! This should be fun," Draco said. He then went up to the chessmen and asked "Do we need to join you to move on?" The white king nodded, and Draco turned to the others. "Alright, I'm taking the kings' place, Hermione take my bishop, Harry, my knight, and Neville, my castle." As the game really got going, Draco noted "Damn, McGonagall is _good_, I haven't had a challenge like this in years."

Eventually, Harry started growing pessimistic about their chances. McGonagall had completely pinned Draco, while her king was fairly safe, and all of them were threatened. Then Draco pulled what Harry believed to be the stupidest move ever: "Queen to F5." While it put the black king in check, it also put their queen in danger from the black queen, and McGonagall instantly took the queen. "Perfect. Harry, take her." Harry then saw his strategy, and couldn't have been prouder of his Slytherin friend. He had sacrificed his queen to make her king immobile, and nothing could save him. McGonagall immediately attempted to recoup her losses by moving one of her pawns to H1 and promoting it to queen, but it was over. "Hermione to C3, take that knight, and checkmate." The black king acknowledged his defeat and his broadsword fell to the ground.

The next room held an enormous gray troll that Neville identified as a cave troll-the strongest and toughest of the species. There was something very queer about it though: the troll was already out cold, if it wasn't dead. "Yet more proof in favour of your godfather and against Quirrell, eh Draco?" Harry asked. They had just made it into the sixth room when a burst of fire cut them off from the troll room and whatever was ahead. "Great, what now?" Harry asked. Draco merely pointed at a table with seven bottles on it, and a riddle.

_**Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,**_

_**Two of us will help you, which ever you would find,**_

_**One among us seven will let you move ahead,**_

_**Another will transport the drinker back instead,**_

_**Two among our number hold only nettle wine,**_

_**Three of us are killers, waiting bidden in line.**_

_**Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,**_

_**To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:**_

_**First, however slyly the poison tries to hide**_

_**You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;**_

_**Second, different are those who stand at either end,**_

_**But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;**_

_**Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,**_

_**Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;**_

_**Fourth, the second left and the second on the right**_

_**Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.**_

"Okay, that is _definitely_ Uncle Sev! He absolutely _loves_ logic problems! He's constantly saying that most wizards have no logic at all and gives me dozens of logic problems to make sure that I'm not one of them." Draco and Hermione then put their heads together and figured out that the smallest bottle would get them into the final chamber, while the rounded bottle at the right end would send them safely back.

"The only problem," Hermione said, "is that there's only enough for one person to drink in both bottles."

"That's no problem," Draco said. "Uncle Sev knows that some people would only go by how much is left in each before moving on, so he makes sure that they can't cheat like that by having only one swallow in each bottle. Listen, we split into two groups, one going forward, the other back. One person from each group swallows their bottle, and when the bottles refill, and they _will_, the other person drinks. It's as simple as that!"

They quickly decided that Harry and Draco would go on, while Hermione and Neville would go back. "You take her back, even if you have to stun her, understand Neville? I don't want to risk losing her," Harry said as Hermione and Draco took their drinks.

"You can count on me, Harry," Neville answered.

Hermione's lip trembled, and she suddenly dashed at Harry and threw her arms around him. "Hermione!"

"Harry — you're a great wizard, you know."

"I'm not as good as you," said Harry, very embarrassed, as she let go of him.

"Me!" said Hermione. "Books! And cleverness! There are more important things — friendship and bravery and love. Oh Harry —be careful!"

"Always," Harry answered, just before giving her a quick peck on the lips, and Neville dragged her away.

Draco turned to his best friend and said "You realize that at least a quarter of the school think you two are already dating, don't you?"

"Really? Well, I have to say that if I had to choose someone to spend the rest of my life with right now, it would probably be Hermione." Draco just smiled as the two walked through the other fire.

Sure enough, as soon as they stepped through, they found Quirinius Quirrell, standing in front of the Mirror of Erised. "I knew it."

"Mr Malfoy? Well now, this _is_ a surprise. I expected Potter, but not you. But then again, you two always were clever students, truly deserving of the high scores I gave you in the final. But . . . you two are far _too_ clever, and I cannot allow you to interfere tonight." And with a snap of his fingers, the two boys were bound with ropes that seemed to come from nowhere.

Despite the burning in his scar, Harry couldn't help but be impressed. "Wordless, wandless conjuring and binding? You have help, don't you? Your 'friend' is who made you beg a few days ago, isn't it?"

"As I said, far too clever for your own good, Mr Potter."

"And Snape was on to you the whole time, that's why he went to the Cerberus on Halloween, and why he confronted you after Harry's second Quidditch match."

"Yes he was, Mr Malfoy," said Quirrell idly, walking around the mirror to look at the back. "Halloween was a complete and total bloody disaster. Not only did I not get a chance to see the defences, but the dog didn't even manage to bite Snape's leg off and you killed my troll! And after the match, he was trying to find out how far I'd got. As you guessed, he suspected me all along. Tried to frighten me — as though he could, when I had the Dark Lord on my side…"

"The Dark Lord is here?!" Draco asked in a shrill voice, now on the edge of panic.

"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "Now, how do I work this mirror? Is the Stone inside? Must I break the mirror? Help me, master!"

To Harry and Draco's sudden horror, a voice answered, and the voice seemed to come from Quirrell himself. "Ussse the boy... Ussse the boy..." It was a low, dry voice, dusty like a snake's hiss.

"Yes, that could work," Quirrell said, and he levitated Harry over, not even giving him the chance to refuse. "Now, tell me, what do you see?" He saw his reflection, pale and scared-looking at first. But a moment later, the reflection smiled at him. It put its hand into its pocket and pulled out a blood-red stone. It winked and put the Stone back in its pocket — and as it did so, Harry felt something heavy drop into his real pocket. Somehow — incredibly —he'd gotten the Stone. "Well? What do you see?"

Harry blanked his mind, and thought of a believable lie, and decided to modify Draco's when he described what he was seeing the one time he saw the mirror after the Christmas holidays. "I'm sitting at the head table in the Great Hall . . . I'm the Headmaster, and Draco's replaced Snape as Potions teacher."

"Oh, get out of the way, Potter! At least I see the Stone when I look at it!"

Harry fell to the ground, but luckily, the fall knocked his wand loose, and it rolled into his hand. Gripping his wand, Harry decided to try out one of the Celtic spells Neville had taught him. "Aliesin," he whispered, and the ropes fell from around him.

Harry immediately got up to go free Draco, but he froze halfway there when the raspy voice spoke again. "He lies . . . he lies."

"Potter, tell me the truth! What did you see?" Quirrell shouted.

"Never, you bastard!" Harry shouted back.

"Let me ssspeak to him, faccce to faccce," the voice said again.

"Master, you are not strong enough yet."

"I have strength enough . . . for thisss." Frozen by curiosity, Harry watched as Quirrell unwrapped his turban, only to reveal a second face on the back of his head! The second face was bone-pale with the thinnest nose Harry had ever seen, only barely more than slits, and blood-red eyes, truly the face of evil. "Harry Potter, we meet again. You see what I've become? See what I must do to survive? Live off another as a mere parasite. Unicorn blood has sustained me for these past nine months, but it cannot give me a body of my own. However, there is something that can. Something that, conveniently enough, lies in your pocket. Why suffer a horrific death when you can join me and live? And Draco, your father already serves me, why not you as well?

"Never!" Harry shouted, while Draco shouted out "Not a chance!"

"Bravery. Your parents had it too, Harry. Your father put up a courageous fight, but your mother need not have died, she was trying to protect you. Speaking of them, tell me, Harry, would you like to see your mother and father again? Together, we can bring them back. All I ask is for something in return."

"You want this?" Harry asked, pulling the Stone out of his pocket. "Sorry, but you can't have it! Ackwele!" And with a burst of blue light, the only Philosopher's Stone in existence was destroyed.

"NO! Kill him!" Quirrell flew at Harry and grabbed his throat, planning on choking him, but his hand started smoking. Quirrell pulled back in horror as his hand turned to dust. "What is this magic?!"

"Fool! Curse him!" Quirrell raised his wand to do just that, but Harry quickly disarmed him with his favourite spell, _Expelliarmus_, and then raced up to him and grabbed his face, all despite the pain that threatened to split his forehead in two. Quirrell eventually pulled back in pain, and to the two boy's shock, Quirrell turned to stone, which then cracked, turned to dust, and then collapsed, leaving only his cloak behind.

Harry quickly turned away to release Draco, and he asked "How did you do that, Harry?"

"Don't ask me, all I did was touch him."

"Hmm, something for your girlfriend to research this sum-Harry, look out!" Harry turned, only to see Voldemort's wraith rising from Quirrell's ashes and rush towards him. Harry dodged to the side, but the wraith still passed through him, and Harry collapsed, his magical core completely exhausted. Draco attempted to rouse him every way he knew, but Harry remained unconscious, so he levitated his friend out of the room and, once he had reunited with the others, and the three of them took Harry to the Hospital Wing (although not before Draco hid himself in Harry's invisibility cloak.) However, he received a surprise when he made it to the chess room, in the form of Headmaster Dumbledore. "You see this, Headmaster? This is what happens when you put your other duties above that of this school! No wonder my father wants you sacked!" Dumbledore just stared after the Malfoy heir in shock as the blonde rushed past him.

_Friday, June 6, 2003_

When Harry woke up two days later, (completely recovered,) he found the Headmaster sitting at the foot of his bed. "Good morning, Harry. You have several tokens from your friends and admirers," he said, gesturing towards a mountain of sweets. "What happened between down in the dungeons between you and Professor Quirrell is a complete secret. So, naturally, the whole school knows. I believe your friends Misters Fred and George Weasley were responsible for trying to send you a toilet seat. No doubt they thought it would amuse you. Madam Pomfrey, however, felt it might not be very hygienic, and confiscated it." Harry just barely managed to cover his laugh at that. M&M would never change, and he hoped they never would. Although, come to think of it, hadn't they promised one to their little sister? "And it is June 6, if you're curious, we'll be having the Leaving Feast tonight. You're friends, Ms Granger and Mr Longbottom have been quite worried."

Harry almost asked about Draco, but then he remembered that it 'wasn't proper' for a Gryffindor and a Slytherin to be friends, and he had more pressing issues to ask about. But he'd have to give the blond his birthday present as soon as he left, as Draco was probably celebrating his thirteenth birthday right now. "Is Mr. Flamel upset about what I did to the Stone?"

"Ah, you know about Nicolas? Then you did go about it properly." Go about it properly? Bloody hell, was this all just a test? "Well, Nicolas and I had a little chat, and agreed it was best all around. They have just enough Elixir to set their affairs in order. But yes, he will die. Though it seems strange to one as young as you, to the Flamels, death is like going to bed after a very long day. After all, to the organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."

Okay, that was an odd idea, but Harry had other questions. "How is it that I got the Stone, sir?"

"Ah, you see, only a person who wanted to find the Stone, find it but not use it, would be able to get it. That is one of my more brilliant ideas. And between you and me, that is saying something." So, the old codger did have a weakness after all, besides his eccentricity: Dumbledore was proud.

"Does that mean, with the Stone gone that is, that Vol-, I mean You-Know-Who, can never come back?"

"First, call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use the proper name for things. Fear of a name only increases fear of the thing itself. But, I'm afraid there are ways in which he can return. But if he is delayed again and again, why, he may never return to power."

"Voldemort said that he only killed my mother because she tried to stop him from killing me. But why would he want to kill me in the first place?"

"Alas, this I cannot tell you. Not today. Not now. You will know, one day… put it from your mind for now, Harry. When you are older… I know you hate to hear this… when you are ready, you will know."

"And why can't I know now? This is the fourth time Voldemort's tried to kill me, and I don't know why!"

"It is far too large a burden to lay on such young shoulders, Harry. When you are older, I will tell you."

Harry glared at him for a full minute before asking, "Then why couldn't Professor Quirrell touch me?"

"It was because of your mother. She sacrificed herself for you, and if there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn't realize that love as powerful as your mother's leaves it's own mark." Harry immediately reached for his scar, but Dumbledore kept going. "This kind of mark cannot be seen. It lives in your very skin. Quirrell, full of hatred, greed, and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good." Harry really doubted this, and decided to follow Draco's suggestion and have Hermione research it.

"And what about my invisibility cloak? Do you know who sent it?"

"Ah, your father left that in my possession just before they went into hiding and I thought you might like it. Your father mostly used it to sneak into the kitchens to steal food, unless of course, he was sneaking around the castle after curfew, as you and your friends like to do."

"One more question, is it possible that I could go home with one of my friends, or even stay here during summer?"

"You don't wish to go home?"

"GO home, sir? How can I go home when I _AM_ home, professor? Privet Drive is nothing more than a prison, _sir_."

"But the Dursleys are your family, are they not? I'm certain they've missed you this year."

"Yeah, missed having their own bloody house-elf that they can order around. They _hate me_, Professor, they hate _magic_, why would they ever care about me?"

"Please, Harry, that is impossible. You are family, and I'm certain they love you, and you are going back home with them." Harry growled at that, the old man didn't even listen! But then he's an adult, why should he have expected any different? Dumbledore got up to leave, until he spotted one of Harry's gifts. "Ah, Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. I was most unfortunate enough in my youth to come across a vomit-flavoured one. And since then I'm afraid, I've lost my liking for them. But I think I could be safe with a nice chocolate." The Headmaster then popped a brown coloured bean in his mouth and started to chew before spitting it out with a disgusted look on his face. "Alas! Manure." Harry gave a most malicious grin at that. There was an unexpected vengeance for not answering his question about Voldemort and ignoring him.

That evening, Harry had just barely managed to convince Madame Pomphrey to let him go to the feast, but before they started, Dumbledore stood up and gave a speech. "Another year, gone. I hope your heads are a little fuller now then when they were when you arrived. Now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding. And the points stand thus: in fourth place, Hufflepuff with 352 points. In third place, Gryffindor with 425 points. In second place, Ravenclaw with 426 points. And in first place, with 472 points, Slytherin House." Slytherin was naturally extremely pleased with themselves, and Harry raised his glass at Draco in a salute, something his friend noticed and Draco responded in kind.

But Dumbledore wasn't done. "Yes, well done, Slytherin. Well done, Slytherin. However, recent events must be taken into account. And I have a few last-minute points to award. To Mr Draco Malfoy, for loyalty, Gryffindor-worthy courage and the best played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, 83 points." Every Slytherin cheered at that, though they had no idea what Draco had done to earn the points. "To Miss Hermione Granger, for the cool use of logic in the face of fire, 40 points. To Mr Neville Longbottom, for loyalty and a superb knowledge of Herbology, 40 points. And finally, to Mr Harry Potter, for pure nerve and outstanding courage, 50 points. And now, if I've done my calculations correctly, we need a change in decoration. For the first time in Hogwarts history, Slytherin and Gryffindor tie for the House Cup." Despite the animosity most of the school held towards Slytherin, the entire school burst into cheers as the House flags split evenly between the red and gold Gryffindor lion, and the green and silver Slytherin serpent.

After a fun-filled trip back to London (complete with fireworks,) Harry and his friends promised to write each other, no matter what, even if it meant using the Muggle post. Harry just smiled at that, nothing could ruin the summer, not even the menagerie that passed for his relatives.

**A/N:** Just to make a few things clear, in this fic, Dumbledore _has _completely repented of his actions surrounding his early years with Gellert, but that has left him completely jaded when it comes to how families actually treat each other. Albus _cannot_ believe that relatives can truly hate each other, even with the evidence of his own brother staring him in his face. That is why he doesn't believe Harry, and then there is his belief in the 'impenetrable blood wards.' The reason for Draco's extremely high points is that Dumbledore actually believes he was mis-sorted and therefore treats him like an honorary Gryffindor, so he allows Slytherin and Gryffindor to tie for the cup. But don't expect that to continue!

Second, Harry didn't discover the Mirror of Erised until after Christmas break, and both Neville and Draco went with him the second time. Neville, like Harry, saw his parents, whole and proud of him, while Draco saw himself as Minister of Magic, with his friends as the Department Heads. Both Gryffindors went back to the Mirror several times, despite Draco and Hermione's warnings, before Dumbledore stopped them.

The change with Snape came because, quite simply, he discovered that Harry was truly much more like Lily than James. Oh, he'll still make the occasional snide remark, but there will be much less hostility between the two of them in this reality.


	2. Second Year

**A/N:** WOW! I have _never_ had such an enthusiastic response to a single chapter! Thank you to everyone who's followed, favourited and reviewed! And to Firemnwnb, I've adjusted the dates for two reasons: one, I'm going to be using some modern songs in the story where they'd fit in (ie, Yule Ball,) and I don't want to bother with the dates the songs actually came out. Second, the most common explanation for why Remus was asleep so long on the train in Third Year is that it was near a full moon. The only year I found with a full moon near September 1 was 2004, so I adjusted the dates accordingly. Everything after Tom's years at Hogwarts have been moved 11 years into the future from canon. As such, all of my Harry Potter stories will take place in the first years of the new millennium instead of the 1990's. You don't like it? Tough.

**Thanks to the Basilisk**

**Prologue Two: Second Year**

_Night of Wednesday-Thursday, July 30-31, 2003_

Harry couldn't have been more wrong when he thought that nothing could ruin his summer. He was completely bored with his pranking buddies two hundred miles away, his window barred up (literally!) and his school things locked up in his old cupboard. (He really needed to have Mischief and Mayhem teach him how to pick locks, assuming they knew!) And even worse, he couldn't even sneak his letters from his friends up to his room, as Vernon snatched _all_ of the mail from him the instant he got back into the kitchen. (And to make things worse, Harry was _certain_ that he'd seen at least three dozen letters on parchment over the past two months.) And now, the night before his birthday, he was forced to stay in his bedroom and act like he didn't exist.

Then, as if things weren't bad enough, he found a creature (Dobby the house-elf,) waiting on his bed, insisting that he not go back to Hogwarts that year because of some plot. Then the bloody elf revealed that he'd been stealing his owl post in an attempt to make him not want to go back (as if that would have ever happened!) And to take the cake (literally _and _figuratively,) Dobby had levitated Petunia's cake over the Dursley's guests and gotten him in trouble with the Ministry, taking away his only weapon against the Dursleys! Harry was about to head to bed when he spotted something flying towards his window . . . was that a car?

Sure enough, it _was_ a flying car, and in the front two seats were two of Harry's favourite people in the whole world. "Heya, Harry!"

"Want to get-"

"Out of here?" Harry finished with a smirk. "Do you really need to ask, guys?" Harry said with a grin. "But I need your help, assuming you know how to pick locks."

Fred put his hand over his heart, as if Harry had mortally wounded him. "Harry, my dear little brother-"

"Could you really think so little of us?" George finished.

As soon as they had removed the bars, Fred jumped out the right door and into Harry's room. He fished out a hairpin from his pocket and within a minute had picked the lock on his door. "Good enough, little bro?"

"Definitely, but my stuff is downstairs, locked in the cupboard under the stairs." Fred immediately headed down, but Harry chased after him. "I forgot to warn you," he whispered, "watch out for the bottom stair, it creaks." Fred nodded, avoided the step, and picked the second lock. The first thing he pulled out he handed to Harry, and the 12 inches of holly and phoenix feather let out several silver and gold sparks, glad at being reunited with it's owner after nearly two months of separation. Harry just hugged it to his chest before grabbing his Nimbus 2010 from Fred. The two boys then headed back up to Harry's room/prison and escaped, but not before Fred grabbed Hedwig's cage, allowing them a smooth and near silent getaway from Privet Drive.

"Happy birthday, little brother," George said as Fred unlocked Hedwig's cage, letting her fly beside the car. Oddly enough though, she flew _away_ from the car and towards London proper.

"Yeah, now get some sleep. We're going to take our time getting home." Harry gladly took his pseudo older brother's advice and promptly fell asleep, still holding onto his wand. Even going at a mere forty miles an hour, they still got to Ottery St Catchpole (their village and the magical counterpart to Ottery St Mary,) at four in the morning, and Harry was still sleeping. Fred just smiled at his little brother and carried him inside the Burrow, while George carried his trunk and broom, dropping the broom off inside their broom cupboard. They then took Harry and lay him down on their bed while they slept on the floor, content to go without the comfort of their bed as long as Harry was there.

Unfortunately for all of them, they were all woken up five hours later by the screaming voice of Molly Weasley, the matriarch of that branch of the Weasley family. "What did you two do? Did you use the car? You could have crashed! And what about Harry's family? Did you even think about how they're going to feel?"

"Mum, there were bars on his window!" George said.

"You better hope I don't put bars on your window, Fredrick Gideon Weasley!"

"Mum, _I'm_ Fred, and there really were bars on his window!"

"That's impossible!"

"But Mrs Weasley, there were bars! That place is a prison!"

"Nonsense, Harry dear. I'm sure that your aunt and uncle love you very much, they wouldn't do that to their own nephew." All three boys had to hold back their sarcastic laughter at that statement, though Harry did wonder how she knew that he lived with his aunt and uncle. And once again, he asked himself why he was surprised that an adult failed to believe him. Maybe finding out he was a wizard, finding out so much about his parents and getting friends had given him more optimism than he had thought. "Now come down and have breakfast, while I figure out a way to apologize to Harry's aunt and uncle, and what to do with you three."

Harry figured it would be useless to argue, but figured he better try anyway. "Don't bother apologizing, Mrs Weasley. They absolutely_ hate_ magic and anyone or anything to do with it. That's why there were bars on my window, and why Fred had to unlock my door and get my Hogwarts stuff out of a locked cupboard. If you try to apologize, you'll just make them angry."

As he expected though, Mrs Weasley just dismissed his concerns and started feeding them. "While you eat, I'll move your things to Ron's room, he has a lot more room than the Twins."

It was only then that Harry noticed his Gryffindor archenemy sitting across from him, glaring at him. His relationship with the youngest Weasley male had started off well enough, but when Harry revealed that he was serious about doing well at Hogwarts, and made friends outside of Ron, their friendship took a nosedive and had never recovered. Harry was also certain that when his friendship with Draco came out, it would become dangerous for him and Ron to even be in the same room. "Mrs Weasley, if you don't mind, I'd rather room with the Twins. Ronald and I are _not _friends. If you try to put us in the same room, then we will probably try to curse each other before the week is out," Harry said, his voice as cold as an Arctic wind.

"Nonsense, Harry. I'm sure that you two will be great friends if you give yourselves the chance," Mrs Weasley said, not even noticing the waves of hatred coming off both boys. Harry's estimation of Mrs Weasley dropped even more, despite her great culinary skills.

At that moment there was a diversion in the form of a small, redheaded figure in a long nightdress, who appeared in the kitchen, gave a small squeal, and ran out again. "And that would be Ginny-"

"Our little sister-"

"Who's had a crush on you since she was-"

"Five years old. Better beware, Harry-

"She starts Hogwarts this year," the Twins explained in a whisper. Harry just stared after her in shock. How was he going to deal with this, especially if she was Sorted into Gryffindor? Maybe he could ask the Headmaster to be resorted? Harry knew he could keep his friendships up as all five of his friends knew he could have been Sorted into Slytherin and had no problems with it. Draco had even said they could be open friends if he had been a Slytherin and that it could be fairly safe for him there. His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Arthur Weasley, just off of a long day of work in the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office. Once Mrs Weasley had blown off some steam getting after him for the car, Harry had managed to pull him aside and convince him to go easy on the Twins, and allow him to stay in their room over Ron's.

Then a little into the afternoon, Hedwig returned with a large package. He quickly opened the letter on top, surprised but ecstatic to find it was from Hermione.

_ Dear Fred and George, and Harry if you're there,_

_ I hope everything went all right and that Harry is okay_ _and that you didn't do anything illegal to get him out you two, because that would get Harry into trouble, too. I've been really worried and if Harry is all right, will you please let me know at once._

_ I'm very busy with schoolwork, of course, and we're going to London Thursday after next to buy my new books. Why don't we meet in Diagon Alley?_ _Let me know what's happening as soon as you can. Oh, and Harry, this is your birthday present from me, I hope you like it. When I saw it in the _Daily Prophet_, I thought of you straight away and ordered it immediately._

_ Love from Hermione._

Harry just smiled at the ending, ignoring the Twins teasing of Hermione's ending and ripped open the package. Inside he saw a sleek black leather case, with silver words stamped across it, reading Broomstick Servicing Kit. "Hermione, I love you," Harry whispered, glad to have a friend that knew him so well.

"I knew you two had a thing for each other," a familiar voice said. Harry smiled as he turned to see the brown-eyed, black haired Robin Black, with a small package under his arm. "Happy birthday, Harry," he said, handing the package over. Harry quickly ripped off the wrapping to find a large book inside: _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts._ "I know you don't know much about the Dark Lord or your parents. Also, I know how much you love learning, and that you think the Dark Lord is going to return so I got this for you. It's a history book about the rise and fall of Grindelwald and the Dark Lord. There's an entire chapter dedicated to you, your parents, their friends and their parts in the war, including pictures."

"Thanks, Rob," Harry said, just as the Weasley's fireplace burst with a large, green fire. Harry was so surprised that he jumped, and when he saw his other dorm-mate (the dorms were spilt into two rooms of three,) Neville get spit out of the fire, he practically hit the ceiling in shock. "Ne-Ne-Neville? How did you do that? What the bloody hell is going on?"

"It's called Flue Travel, Harry, and what do you think is going on? It's your birthday party! The Twins wrote us to let us know they were rescuing you so we decided to celebrate your birthday as well. I hope you like my present, it used to be mine, but I had to get rid of it."

"Why is that?"

"Gran didn't like it for some reason. Not sure why, it's just a book of duelling spells. The weird thing is that she didn't freak out about it until I asked her what something meant, then she insisted that I get rid of it."

"That's weird," Harry said. He studied the cover of the fairly large, green book. Oddly, the title was in silver writing: _The Form of the Serpent: Duelling for the Speaker by _. . . "Neville, did you see who wrote this book?" Neville shook his head, as Harry gave his friends the shock of their lives. "This was written by Salazar Slytherin himself! You gave me a book written by one of the Founders!" No wonder the book was green with silver writing!

"What?! A book written by _him?!_ Harry Potter, hand that book over this instant!" Everyone was shocked to see Mrs Weasley storming over there; it was remarkable how much she looked like a sabre-toothed tiger at the time.

"What's wrong with Salazar Slytherin?" Harry asked curiously.

"He was a Dark Lord, and ancestor to You-Know-Who! Anything he wrote is nothing more than Dark magic, just waiting to seduce innocent little children like yourself!"

Harry bowed his head, and for a minute looked like he was going to hand the book over. Mrs Weasley walked over with her hand out for the book, but then Harry asked "What are you going to do with it?"

"Why, I'm going to destroy it, of course. What did you expect me to do with it, Harry dear?"

The Twins, Robin and Neville all winced at that statement. Harry was almost as much of a bibliophile as Hermione was (just far more subtle about it,) and the thought of destroying a book was sacrilege to him. Harry on the other hand just whipped his wand and pointed it at Mrs Weasley. She froze in shock as Harry started hissing at her. "Mrs Weasley, I love the Twins as if they were my own brothers, but you _are getting on my nerves_. You've refused to listen to me or the Twins about anything today, you try to get me to room with my worst enemy, school wise anyway, and now you're trying to take one of the first birthday presents I can remember getting? _No_, not a chance! You have two choices right now, either leave me alone for the rest of the summer, or I leave with Neville. I hope you guys don't mind," Harry said, turning to the only Weasleys he currently liked and his best friend.

"Not a problem, Harry. Mum always has been overbearing," Fred answered.

"And I'm sure Gran wouldn't mind having you over, so long as you kept that book hidden," Neville said.

"So, what's your answer, Mrs Weasley? Am I staying, or going with Neville? It's up to you. I'd much prefer to stay with the Twins, no offence Neville, but for me to do that, _you_ need to lay off all three of us." But Mrs Weasley was too set in her ways, too worried about those she considered her children (though she'd only met Harry that morning,) and demanded the duelling book. "Sorry guys, looks like I won't see you until Diagon Alley at the earliest, but definitely on the train. Neville, I'll be right back, I just need to get my trunk."

"Sure thing Harry, I'll call my Gran and warn her that you're coming too."

Harry smiled at the older boy and headed inside. The first person he saw was the only person he was glad to see. "Mr Weasley, did you move my trunk yet?"

"No Harry, I didn't, why do you ask?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to be spending the summer with Neville, sir. Your wife just tried to take one of my birthday presents, just because of who wrote the book. And earlier this morning, it sounded like she was going to punish the Twins for rescuing me from my Muggle relatives. I can't stand it when adults don't listen to me or try to tell me what's safe for me to read and what's not."

Arthur just shook his head, saying "Just like your mother. She hated being told what she couldn't learn, too, and she was also fiercely independent. Go ahead and get your things, Harry. When will you be going to Diagon?"

"Hermione's planning on going in two weeks, sir, but I'm not sure about Mrs Longbottom. I'll see what I can do though." Fifteen minutes later, Harry and Neville flued to Longbottom Manor in Lancashire. Augusta Longbottom was a _very_ intimidating witch, even compared to Mrs Weasley, but at least she listened to Harry and Neville. She _was_ going to give Harry his own room, but when the two boys asked to share a room, she smiled and said that she was glad Neville and Harry had such a strong friendship. The next day, when she found out that Harry had no knowledge about his heritage, she immediately took it on herself to teach him everything she knew about being the heir to a Noble and Ancient House.

_Thursday, August 14, 2003_

Despite having lived at the Longbottom's for only two weeks, it was a very different Harry Potter that flued into the Leaky Cauldron that Thursday. His previously unadorned everyday robes now had a small Potter crest where the Hogwarts crest would be on his school robes, and a wrist holster for his wand. His glasses were brand new with green frames and charmed to be unbreakable and give him perfect night vision, and he walked far more confidently than he had. All in all, Harry now looked far closer to Draco or Neville than the scared twelve-year-old that had visited Diagon Alley with Hagrid, a truly respectable scion of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter. But that changed as soon as he spotted Hermione. As soon as he saw her, he ran up to her and twirled her in a hug.

"What the-? Who are . . . Harry?" Hermione asked before finally recognizing the distinctive emerald eyes and messy brown hair. "Harry, what was that for?"

"Just because I missed you," Harry said, with the brightest smile that anyone had ever seen, bright enough to almost literally light up the room. He then turned to the two adults that _had_ to be her parents, her mother had the _exact same_ bushy brown hair that he loved, while her father had eyes that were exactly her shade of brown. That, and the fact that they were Muggles made it quite obvious that they were the Dr's Granger. "Dr Granger, it's an honour to meet you, sir," he said, shaking her father's hand. "My name is Harry Potter." Then he turned to the Mrs Dr Granger, took her hand, and just like any good lord-to-be, bowed his head to her hand and give it a kiss. "Mrs Granger, meeting you, it's easy to see where Hermione got her beauty from."

Dr Shylock Granger just stared in shock at the boy who had just greeted his wife like some old-fashioned lord would have, and actually caused her to blush to boot! He hadn't seen Emma blush like that since the day that they had married! Confused, he decided to study the boy that was the subject of so many of Hermione's letters. The way Hermione had described him before, he expected a shy, skinny boy in clothes that were several sizes too large for him with broken glasses, in short, a boy that could _never_ be worthy of his princess.

Looking at the boy who had so impressed him, he could barely tell it was the same boy. He was still shorter than Hermione, same intense emerald green eyes that she'd described so vividly, and he was still quite skinny, but the rest was quite different, it was no wonder Hermione didn't recognize him at first! Not only did he act like a lord, he _looked _the part as well. What had so dramatically changed him to the point that it _almost _looked like he _could_ be worthy of his only little girl?

All this took less than five seconds, and in that time, Harry noticed the fourth member of their party. "And who is this?" The fourth person was a boy about ten years old with slightly messy dark brown hair (better than Harry or Hermione's,) deep blue eyes and was the same height as Harry

"Harry, this is my little brother, Anthony-"

"Sis! You know I prefer Sebastian!"

"-Anthony Sebastian Granger, who prefers to be known by his middle name. He's going to be starting Hogwarts this year, we were just about to get our new books, if you want to join us."

"Why get new books if they haven't changed? Why not just let him use your old ones?" Harry asked. "Then again, thinking over the list, there's only one that you could give him, _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1_, everything else we still need. Tell you what," he said, turning to Sebastian, "I've got a ton of money that's sitting around doing nothing, more than I know what to do with, anyway. Why don't I buy your books for you?"

"Wow, you'd do that, Harry?" Sebastian asked.

"Well, why not? I like your sister well enough, so why not you too?"

"Harry, that's really not necessary-" Hermione tried to say, but Harry stopped her.

"No, but I want to do it, Mione. Now, come on, let's get to Gringott's, and I'll show you just how much money I have."

"Actually, Harry, the vault you're using now is probably only a Trust vault," Augusta said. "Are there any jewels, portraits, furniture or books in there?" When he told her that there was nothing but money in there, she confirmed that it was just his trust vault. The Grangers, upon hearing that, bent their admittedly stiff necks and allowed Harry to take care of Sebastian's schoolbooks, (which, as it turned out, were pretty much the same no matter what, only the DADA books changed from year to year. Harry had asked the Weasleys about it, and Arthur and Molly were all too happy to share the information.)

Harry had one more encounter that day at Diagon Alley, other than the absolutely _horrifying_ one with their future DADA teacher, the glory-hound Gilderoy Lockhart. About ten minutes before said disaster, Harry was yanked into a small alley by Draco Malfoy. "Draco, what's this about?"

"Harry, what are you doing here?"

"Umm, getting my school supplies, what else?"

"Harry, it _isn't safe_ for you at Hogwarts this year! My father is plotting something to do with you, the Weasleys and the Dark Lord! _Please_ don't go to school this year!" Harry just laughed off Draco's warning, saying that he wasn't worried, and Draco shouldn't be either.

He then went to his disastrous encounter with Lockhart, which 'Malfoy' showed up to as well, making fun of both Harry's encounter with Lockhart and the Weasleys. After that, Harry finally took Neville to Ollivander's wand shop, where Augusta was shocked by the old man's announcement. "You gave him his father's wand? Madame Longbottom, an Ash wand is notorious for it's loyalty to only one owner, it should _never_ be used as an heirloom wand! I'm surprised that your son has done as well as he has with it! That he managed to do so well speaks _highly_ of his power levels. Come, Mr Longbottom, let's find a wand that will truly match you." Eventually, Ollivander found Neville a thirteen-inch Holly wand with Phoenix Feather. Coincidentally, the wand was made from the same branch that made Harry's own wand, a curiosity that Ollivander was quick to point out. However, the feather came from a different Phoenix, one that had Slytherin colours, a rarity among the species. Sebastian on the other hand, was chosen by an extremely rare elder wand with dragon heartstring. Coincidentally, the heartstring came from the same dragon as his sister's wand.

_Monday, September 1, 2003_

Harry and the Longbottom's safely flued to Platform 9 3/4 fifteen minutes before the Hogwarts Express was due to leave, and the teens quickly found Hermione and an empty compartment to share. About an hour into the trip to Hogwarts, Draco sneaked inside the compartment and cast a Notice-Me-Not charm on the door. "Hey, Draco, what's going on?" Harry asked.

"Trouble, that's what's going on, Harry. Somehow my father heard rumours about our friendship and . . . I'll have to act even worse to you now than before. Hermione, I'm sorry, but you'll probably bear the brunt of 'Malfoy's' anger. I may even have to insult you this year."

"What kind of insult, Draco?" Hermione asked.

"I might have to call you a . . . a _mudblood_," Draco said, whimpering at the foul name for any muggleborn.

"What's a mudblood?" Sebastian asked, completely ignorant of the word.

Harry growled out "It's a foul name for anyone who's muggleborn, typically used by purebloods, like the Malfoys. Oh, and Draco, just for a warning, _Searassa_!" Harry hissed out, putting one of his newest spells to use. Draco immediately started twitching, like his entire body was on fire, before Harry ended the curse a few seconds later. "Sorry, Draco, but I will _not_ have _anybody_ insulting Hermione, understand?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Harry, but I thought it would be better if you heard it from me first. And I can't exactly blame you for the spell either." The four friends then started chatting with each other, while teaching Sebastian what to expect at Hogwarts. The trip managed to go completely normal (other than the fact that Harry, Neville and Draco could all see pale winged horses that everyone else claimed weren't there,) until the Sorting started. Because Sebastian was Hermione's little brother, everyone expected him to be another Gryffindor, or perhaps the Ravenclaw his sister should have been. But Sebastian Granger defied all predictions and was sorted into "SLYTHERIN!" where Draco immediately placed him under his protection, as he _was_ the first Muggleborn to be sorted into Slytherin in two generations. Ginny on the other hand was sorted into "HUFFLEPUFF!" Harry couldn't have been happier at that. If there was one house that he almost never interacted with, it was the Badgers, as the Gryffindors had only one class with them: Herbology.

_Wednesday, December 3, 2003_

This year at Hogwarts was proving to be a disaster. Lockhart was actually a _worse_ Defence teacher than Quirrelmort had been, and that was saying something. To make things worse, at Halloween, a monster had been unleashed, petrifying Filch's cat, Mrs Norris. The one who unleashed the monster had left a message written on the wall:

**THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.**

**ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.**

With the help of Draco and Professor McGonagall, the four friends found out that the message meant the 'Heir of Slytherin,' and that the monster was supposed to cleanse Hogwarts of those that Salazar Slytherin believed to be unworthy to study magic: the Muggleborns. Because of that, somehow the students of Hogwarts got the idea that _Harry_ of all people was the Heir. Today though, something Harry had done in the Duelling Club had made them even _more_ convinced of Harry's guilt.

Fortunately Robin had pulled him aside before he could be mobbed by the rest of the student body. "Why didn't you tell us you were a Parselmouth?" Draco demanded.

"A what?"

"It means you can talk to snakes," Robin explained.

"I know," said Harry.

Draco shook his head and said "He knows, he says. _You know and you didn't tell __**me?**_ Why the bloody hell not?"

"I mean, that's only the second time I've ever done it. I accidentally set a python on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once-long story-but she was telling me she had never seen Burma and I sort of set her free without meaning to, that was before I knew I was a wizard-"

"A python told you it had never seen Brazil? Only you, Harry," Robin said, laughing.

"So? I bet loads of people here can do it."

"_Harry!_ There _aren't_ that many people who can speak Parseltongue. In fact, the most famous person to speak it was Salazar Slytherin!" Draco explained.

"So? If I hadn't told that snake not to attack Justin-"

"Oh, so _that's_ what you said to it!"

Then Neville surprised everyone by saying "Why are you so surprised, Rob? I understood him perfectly, and he was speaking English, not Parseltongue." Everyone stared at him in confusion. "What? Why are you all staring at me?"

Draco shook his head and explained. "Because Harry definitely spoke Parseltongue, Neville. Let me try something." He quickly cast another _Serpensortia_, focusing on a garden snake. "Alright, try talking to it, Neville." Neville stared at him in confusion, but he complied, quickly striking up a conversation with the snake. Now the confusion was running rampant. Not only was Harry a Parselmouth, but now so was Neville! What were they supposed to do about this? "Harry, can you understand what they're talking about?"

"Yeah, easily, and now that I'm looking for it, you're right, that is a different language. But how is it that we can understand Parseltongue? And how did we not know this before?"

"Harry, think about it. How often are you going to run across a snake in England? There could be many Parselmouths out there but we'd never know it because it's considered Dark or because they've never seen a snake. As to how you know Parseltongue, well, who knows?" Rob said.

"Well then, there's only one way to find out. Everyone's going to start thinking that I'm the Heir of Slytherin now, so we need to find out if Gringott's can find out the truth. Then we can know for sure if we're related to Salazar."

_Saturday, March 27, 2004_

Within a few weeks, Harry and Neville had received the reply from Gringotts, and after some tests on samples of their blood, discovered that not only were they both descended from Salazar, but they were descended from his only son, and that son, one Lot of Orcady (the modern Orkney Islands,) had two sons who were famous even in the Muggle world: the twins Galahad and Gawain of Arthurian fame. Galahad's family went on to found the Potter and Peverell lines, while Gawain founded the Longbottom family, and in honour of their ancestors, the two families had always been the strongest of allies and the closest of friends. Salazar had had only one other child, a daughter named Sylene who founded a family called Gaunt, and the family had only rarely had members go to Hogwarts, and none in more than 175 years.

Then, at Christmas, the five friends (Harry, Hermione, Neville, Robin and Draco) took a potion that they'd been working on for a month: the Bestia Anima, or Animagus potion, a potion that would allow them to discover their Animagus form. Harry and Hermione had discovered it quite by accident while researching the Polyjuice Potion, which they also used that Christmas in order to 'interrogate' Draco about the Heir of Slytherin. Draco told them all he knew, which wasn't much: the Chamber had been opened before about 60 years earlier, and a girl had died. Then, the previous month Harry had accidentally discovered an enchanted diary from the same time that could write back. Having been warned about the potential dangers of enchanted books and the power of names, Harry used another name and learned what the diary would tell him: that the school had been in danger of closing, the one who opened it wasn't imprisoned, and Hagrid had been accused of the crime, thus leading to him being expelled.

Then, just the week before, someone had broken into Harry's dorm and ransacked his things, with only the diary being stolen. And now, today, he had heard that terrible voice for the first time since before Christmas. Fortunately Hermione had a revelation and ran off to the library to confirm her theory, but not before promising to be back in time to catch his game, and giving him a kiss on the cheek. Harry's best friends both grinned at him after that. "So, have you two made it official yet, mate?" Neville asked.

Harry blushed before saying, "No, we haven't, not yet any way. I just haven't found the right words to say, and there's never been a good time, not with the current situation. Maybe I'll tell her after the match," he finished before heading off to the Pitch.

Fifteen minutes later, Oliver was finishing up his pre-game speech. "We play our game, Hufflepuff doesn't stand a chance. We're stronger, quicker and smarter."

"Not to mention they're dead scared that Harry will petrify them if they fly anywhere near him," Fred said with a smile as they walked out. Harry grinned at the Twins. They'd been making jokes about him being the Heir from the beginning, and he loved them for it.

"Well, that too," Oliver conceded before taking off for the centre of the field.

But just as the girls were taking their place, McGonagall stepped to the centre of the field and, placing her wand at her throat, said "This match has been cancelled. All students are to make their way back to their House Common Rooms, where their Heads of House will give them further information. As quickly as you can please!" Oliver flew down to argue, but McGonagall sent him off with a glare. But as Harry landed, McGonagall called to him. "Potter, I think you'd better come with me."

"What? Professor, you don't think-"

"No, this is more personal, Potter. Now please, follow me." When Neville and Robin found them, McGonagall allowed them to follow, saying that they had better come as well. Harry's heart started to sink as he recognized the all-too-familiar route to the Hospital Wing. As they reached the door, McGonagall spoke again. "I warn you, this could be a wee bit of a shock. There's been another attack . . . another _double_ attack. I'm sorry, Mr Potter, but it's-"

"Hermione!" Harry cried out as he rushed to her and fell to his knees at her side. He didn't move or hear anything for several hours after that as he wept by her side.

**A/N:** One final note, I am looking for a Beta for both this and _Tabula Rasa_, someone who can help me keep the characters believable and away from the super-powered stories. I can like those stories, and in fact have one, but this isn't it. And for my _Tabula Rasa_ Beta, I would like someone who has an idea as to how a criminal trial works, because I'm stuck on mine. Also, I wonder if any of you could help me find a story, because I've lost it. The story is a Harry-in-Slytherin story, but this time, Hermione is with him in Slytherin. Last I read, the story had finished First Year and had started Second Year, where it shows Hermione is distancing herself from her Muggle family. Any help would be welcome.


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